


Untitled As Of Now

by Raina_1985



Category: Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-29
Updated: 2013-12-29
Packaged: 2018-01-06 15:16:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1108385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raina_1985/pseuds/Raina_1985
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An old enemy of Mick's resurface's and it's up to Mick to protect his team and the man he loves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Untitled As Of Now

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a story I started a long time ago back on fanfiction.net but I decided to expand it. It's a long way from being finished but I wanted to see if anyone liked it before I went further.

It was late Friday night and the team had just finished up another case. It’d gone well and they were all celebrating with a few drinks at the bar that was across from Coop’s place. They’d been there about a hour and a half now and the whole time Coop had been drinking a beer and watching Mick shoot pool with Prophet. His eyes had barely left the kid all night. Mick looked up just as he was getting ready to shoot and he caught Coop’s eyes on him. Mick shot him a grin and then made the shot sinking the ball and taking Prophet’s money to boot. After all this time you’d think John would learn not to play pool with Mick….

Coop took another drink of his beer and then got up from the table they were all sitting at and walked outside the bar. He knew it wouldn’t be long before Mick followed. 

As if right on cue Mick came out the double doors to find Coop leaning up against the building in the rain. 

“Coop? You okay?” Mick asked worried something might be bothering Sam. 

“Yeah…no…I don’t know really. I just…you almost died today Mick. If Beth hadn’t been there…” Coop leaned his head back against the building and tried his damnedest to block out just how close they’d come to loosing Mick today. How close he’d come to loosing the only man he’d ever loved…

“Coop I’m okay. Really. I’m right here.” Mick didn’t know if those words were to reassure Coop or to reassure him self. He too was more shaken than he’d been letting on. It’d been too close today. And he didn’t want to think about what would of happened if Beth hadn’t of been there. 

Coop just looked at him for a few minutes, as if trying to make up his mind about something. But whatever it was he must of shook it off. 

“Yeah. I know. I just…. Never mind. You want to go back to my place and get out of this rain?”

“Sure. That’d be great. Let me grab my coat and tell the others we’re leaving.” Mick ran back inside and a few seconds later they were both hurrying across the street towards Coop’s place. 

A few minutes later they were inside and out of the rain. Which was a disappointment for Coop. The kid looked hot as hell when he was wet. Hell he looked hot as hell even when he wasn’t wet. Always had.

After hanging their coats up Coop went to the kitchen and got them a couple of beers out of the fridge. He handed one to Mick and then leaned back against the cabinet. 

“So now that we’re here and no one can over hear us are you going to tell me what’s really wrong?” Mick took a long swig of his beer, his eyes never leaving Coop’s. He knew something was bothering the other man. He’d always been able to tell when something was bothering Coop. 

“When I saw you out there today…when I saw how close I almost came to loosing you….” Coop couldn’t finish the sentence. Instead he took another swig of his beer.

“Coop… look at me.” Mick set his beer down and moved forward towards him. “I’m here. I’m okay. Yeah it was close but we’ve had a lot of close calls before. What makes this any different?” 

“Because I finally realized that one of these times one of us isn’t going to come out alive. And I don’t want to die without you knowing how I feel about you.” Sam swallowed hard. His voice had gone hoarse. 

Mick’s heart rate picked up. Sam had feelings for him? He’d always known the man cared deeply about him. Hell they’d always been tight. He’d just never known how deep those feelings really ran until now….

Sam watched Mick for a few minutes and when the kid didn’t back away he sat his beer down too and moved forward to close the gap between them. 

“Mick…” Coop slowly lowered his head and kissed the younger man. And when Mick didn’t resist he took it as a sign to move forward. He settled his hands on the kid’s hips and pulled him closer still kissing him gently. 

When he finally pulled back he found Mick staring at him. There was no mistaking the desire in the kid’s eyes. It was there. Laid bare for Sam to see. And it was all Sam needed to know…

So bringing his hand up he gently cupped the back of the younger man’s neck and kissed him again. God why hadn’t he done this sooner? 

When they pulled apart again Mick’s eyes searched his. “Coop?” 

“I need you Mick. God help me… I need you. When I saw you out there today….” 

“Shhh…” Mick stopped the other man with a gentle kiss. “I’m here. Coop. And I‘m not going anywhere.” Mick wanted so badly to ease the other man’s worries and fears but he didn’t know how. He didn’t know what more to say to reassure Coop so he did the only thing he knew to do to make him see that he was really all right.

“Coop… Take me.” 

“Mick…you don’t have to….” Mick cut him off mid sentence.

“I know Sam. But I want to. I’ve been wanting to for a long time now.” With that Mick kissed Coop silencing him. 

It was true…he wasn’t just doing this to reassure Sam that he was really okay. He was doing it because he’d wanted this man for so long he couldn’t remember ever not wanting him. And why they hadn’t acted on this sooner Mick would never know. As far as he was concerned they’d wasted too much time already.

Coop lifted Mick up and spun them around so he could sit the younger man on his kitchen counter, their lips never breaking apart and Mick’s arms going around Coop’s neck, his legs around his waist.

God, the kid tasted good but Coop forced himself to break the kiss apart long enough to ask. 

“Mick, have you… have you ever done this before?” Coop had to know. And he had to know now. If the kid was a virgin…he had to slow shit down.

“Yeah Sam. You’re not the first guy I’ve been with. Don’t worry.” Worry? Mick being a virgin didn’t worry him. Mick being with another guy worried him. Just the thought made Coop want to kill the bastard who’d been with him. 

But Coop put aside the jealousy that he had no right to feel and he went back to kissing Mick all the while working his shirt up and off. They only broke apart long enough to pull the darn thing over Mick’s head. Coop gave it a toss behind him not caring where it landed.

God the kid was beautiful. All sleek muscle and tanned skin that was still wet from the rain. Coop moved in closer and slowly began to trail kisses down his neck...his throat….

Mick leaned his head back against the cabinets behind him, savoring the feeling of Coop kissing him…touching him… Oh god it felt good. So good…

Coop trailed those kisses down his chest slowly as his hands worked with the button on Mick’s pants. As Coop’s hands fumbled with the zipper on Mick’s jeans Mick worked Coop’s shirt off over his head and tossed the thing off to the side. 

“Coop…bedroom. Now….” Mick gasped in between kisses. Mick slid off the counter and they headed for the bedroom. Or at least they tried to head for the bedroom. They couldn’t seem to keep their hands off each other the whole way there. Kissing…fumbling with what was left of their clothes…. And when they did make it to the bedroom they were both completely naked. Coop had to suck his breath in at the sight of Mick. Jesus. The kid was perfect. He’d always known Mick was beautiful but until now he’d never known just how beautiful. 

Mick watched Coop’s heated stare. If he’d had any doubts about how badly Coop wanted him they were gone now. 

He watched the older man move forward and Mick grinned and moved backwards towards the bed, teasing Cooper. 

Sam grinned right back and moved forward and he kept moving forward until Mick backed into the edge of the bed. Right where he wanted him. 

Coop put a hand out and pushed Mick back onto it. Mick went easily and he watched Sam as the other man slowly lowered himself down over him and kissed him again.

Mick broke the kiss with a gasp. “Coop…I…I need you. Please….” 

“Shhh…baby. I’m gonna take care you. I promise.” With that Sam trailed kisses on down the side of Mick’s neck…then his chest…and down his stomach…Those slow kisses were pure torture to Mick and by the time Sam reached his cock he was panting and fighting back the urge to cum. 

Oh god. He was so hard he hurt. And his balls were so tight he thought they were going to explode. A whimper escaped him.

“Sam…” Mick looked down the length of his body to meet a pair of amused brown eyes. 

“Yeah Mick…?” Sam grinned. He liked making the little sniper loose control. It was something not very many men had the pleasure of doing. 

“Oh god…please…” Mick whimpered again. He wasn’t sure what he was asking for. Was it for Sam to fuck him or suck him?? Jesus he didn’t know. He just knew that if he didn’t do something soon he was going to die from the pleasure/pain of it.

Deciding to take mercy on him Coop lowered his head and took Mick fully into his mouth. And when Mick tried to arch up into the touch Coop held his hips still. Maybe he wasn’t done teasing after all…

Mick couldn’t think. Hell he could barely breath as he felt Coop’s mouth slide slowly back up his cock. He felt the other man’s tongue slowly swirl around the head of his cock once…twice…then he slid back down engulfing him again. Mick clutched the sheets beneath him and cried out as Coop slid back up his length to repeat the process again and again until Mick was sure he was going to cum. But every time he got close Coop kept him from it by tightening his grip on his cock.

Mick whimpered again. “ Coop please…oh god please Sam….”

Sam let Mick’s cock slide back out of his mouth. “Please what Mick?” 

“Jesus! Sam please fuck me!” Mick slammed his head back on the bed in frustration. 

Sam laughed. Yeah… Now he laughs…Mick thought.

Sam moved back up over him and kissed him again all the while letting his fingers trail back down the length of Mick’s body to gently probe at his opening. 

Mick didn’t know when or where Coop had got the lube but he felt the cool lubricant as Sam slowly slid a finger inside him. Loosening him up. Preparing him…

Mick spread his legs wider to give Sam better access. Oh god…he hoped like hell Sam hurried up. His cock hurt like hell with the need to cum and those fingers that were slowly stretching him only made that need worse. Especially when Sam hit his prostate.

Mick jumped and let out another whimper as Coop was kissing him. 

Sam seemed to take pity on him though and quickly lubed up his own cock. God the kid was beautiful, all that tanned skin and sleek muscle glistening with a sweat and those eyes… he could get lost in those dark brown eyes. 

And as he slowly slid his cock into Mick’s tight ass that’s exactly what he did. He got lost in those eyes and watched as they rolled back when he finally hit the kid’s prostate.

God the look on his face as he took him…

Mick arched his backed as he held on to Coop’s shoulders and Coop took advantage of the position to kiss his now exposed neck. All the while slowly rolling his hips and hitting Mick’s sweet spot again and again. 

“Coop…faster…please….” Mick whimpered as the need built higher and higher. 

This time Coop couldn’t deny the plea. His own need to cum was overriding everything else. So he sped up and as he sped up he reached down between them and took Mick’s cock into his hand stroking him in time to his thrust. It wasn’t but a few seconds later that Mick called out his name. 

“Coop!” The kid came and he came hard. And Coop followed right behind him. 

When it was over they both lay there panting with Coop still buried deep inside him. Jesus. Mick couldn’t remember ever coming so hard in his life. 

Still dazed and basking in the after glow Mick barely noticed when Coop pulled out and stretched out on the bed pulling Mick in close beside him. Mick laid his head on Coop’s chest and within minutes they were both asleep, the worries of the day forgotten for now.

***

Sometime during the night Coop was awoken by his cell phone ringing. Glancing at the bedside clock he noticed it was barely 2:30 in the morning. Jesus. Who the hell was calling him at this hour? Looking at the caller id on his cell phone he recognized the number. Jack. Damn…he should of known. Sighing tiredly he looked at Mick and found the kid still sound asleep beside him. So he got up and quietly went in to the kitchen before he answered it. 

“Yeah.”

“Sorry to wake you up Sam but I’ve got a case that can’t wait.” 

Sam listened carefully as Jack went into the details. The FBI was on the trail of a serial killer who’d struck again late last night about 20 miles outside of Chicago. Two bodies had been dumped in a secluded area in the woods and Jack wanted them out there before the scene had a chance to go cold. Maybe they could pick up something that the FBI hadn’t been able to. So far all the FBI had been able to do was bang their heads against a brick wall. Whoever the killer was he was a professional and he wasn’t leaving any clues behind. He was that good. And the FBI was getting desperate to catch the bastard before any more bodies turned up. 

“Alright. We’ll be there.” With that Sam hung up and when he turned around he wasn’t surprised to find Mick standing there watching him. Sometime during Sam’s little phone conversation the kid had woken up and slipped his jeans back on. Damn shame that. 

“Who was on the phone Sam?”

“Jack. He has another case for us. It’s about 20 miles outside of Chicago. He needs us there by morning before the scene has a chance to go cold.”

“Alright. You want me to call the others and have them meet us there?” Mick asked quietly. 

“Yeah. We better. But don’t bother calling Beth. As of last night she’s officially on vacation for the next two weeks. She finally decided to take a little down time.” Coop couldn’t help but grin at that thought. Beth was a workaholic and the thought of her trying to take a vacation…yeah…he gave her two days tops and she’d be begging him to come back to work. Only problem is Coop wasn’t going to let her come back until her vacation was up. That woman needed a little time off. 

“What are you grinning at?” Mick asked.

“Beth and the thought of her trying to take a vacation.” He grinned again.

Mick just laughed. “Yeah. I see your point.” Mick loved the woman to pieces but she was in serious need of some R and R. All work and no play wasn’t a good way to be. Well…at least that was Mick’s theory.

With that Mick went to call John and Gina to let them know what was going on. They were seriously going to hate him for calling them this early. But he just grinned at the thought. Paybacks were a bitch…

****

The ride was a long one, from Cincinnati, Ohio to Chicago, Illinois. Coop and Mick had stopped and picked up Gina and John and now while Mick drove Sam caught them up to speed on everything that Jack had told him over the phone. 

And by the time they finally got there it was nearing 8:00 in the morning. Mick parked the van and they all got out to go meet up with Jack who was waiting for them. 

“Cooper. Glad you made it. Rawson, LaSalle, Simms. Good to see you guys again.” They each nodded in greeting to the older man. “Like I said…I’m sorry for calling you at such an hour but this can’t wait. Here lately the body count has been getting higher and higher and the FBI are getting desperate to catch this guy. They’ve been trying to for a couple of years now but it’s like butting your head against a brick wall. Like I said…I think we’re dealing with a professional. He never leaves any clues behind. The only thing we have to go on is a brand that has been seared into the victims. 

“A brand?” Coop asked. “Where are the bodies?”

“This way. And Coop…you and your team need to brace yourselves. They’re just kids and whoever did this made them suffer dearly before he ever killed them.”

Damn…these were the type of cases Mick hated the most, the ones that involved kids. They were always the worst. 

But never the less Mick and the others followed Sam deep into the woods until they came to a clearing were the bodies had been found. 

Mick winced when he saw them.

Damn…Jack had been right about one thing. These kids had suffered horribly before they’d ever been killed. Bending down Mick crouched close to the kid on the left. The boy couldn’t have been more than 15 or 16 years old. He had short dark brown hair and his body had been left nude face down on the ground. And on his back were deep whip marks. Like someone had tried to flay the kid alive. The wounds were deep and ragged indicating that whatever had been used to beat the boy had most likely had spikes on the end of it.  
And to top things off blood caked the kids legs indicating he’d been brutally raped. If the beating or the killer hadn’t of killed him the hemorrhaging most likely would have Mick thought silently.

“Jesus. Who the hell would do this to a kid?” John looked across at Mick from the other side of the body where he was crouched. Mick looked up at John and noticed his friend was looking a little pale. He couldn’t blame him. Mick was feeling a little sick himself. 

“I don’t know Prophet. It’s a question I ask myself every time I see another dead one.” Sighing Mick carefully turned the body over to examine the other side and when he did he froze when he saw the brand that was seared into the kid’s right shoulder. That brand…he knew that brand…

Oh Jesus.

Memories flashed through Mick’s mind suddenly. Memories of that same brand being seared into his own skin, memories of his own flesh burning while he was held down. 

Bile rose in Mick’s throat and fear shot through him. A fear he hadn’t felt in years.

Oh God… It couldn’t be…it couldn’t be him...He was supposed to be dead… 

“Mick?” No answer. “Mick? You okay kid?” John was looking at him, worried. 

“I…I’m fine.” Mick forced himself say even though it wasn’t true. 

“You don’t look fine. You look like you’re going to be sick. Not that I blame you…” John grimaced, looking down at the body again. He too was feeling a little queasy. When he looked back up though Mick was still frozen and staring at that brand. He didn’t seem to have heard a word John said. 

Frowning John tried again. “Mick?”

“I’m fine. Let’s go. We saw all we needed to. Let’s see what Coop and Gina’s got.” With that Mick got up and went over to see the other body, which was in a very similar state to the one they’d just examined. 

John stood up and watched Mick go and then after a few minutes he followed after him confused as hell. Something wasn’t right. Mick had recognized that brand and John knew it. He hadn’t frozen up until he’d seen that brand. What the hell? Did Mick know their killer or had he seen the brand somewhere before? And if he did why didn’t he say something? 

***

Mick had to force himself to crouch down beside Coop and examine the other body and when he did more memories flashed. This time of a room…he was hanging from the ceiling, strung up by chains. His arms stretched tight above his head…and hands…hands were on him…touching him…caressing him…and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about…

Mick closed his eyes and did his damnedest to block those memories out like he’d been doing the last 8 years of his life. But it wasn’t working. The memories kept flashing. Memories of things he’d tried so hard to forget. Memories of a past he thought he’d long ago put behind him. 

Jesus…he had to get out of here. He needed some air. 

So he did the only thing he could think of.

“Coop. I…I’m going to go search the surrounding area. See if maybe the FBI guys didn’t miss anything alright?” 

Coop looked up at that and when he did he noticed that Mick looked pale, really pale, like he was on the verge of getting sick. What the hell? What had shaken the kid up so badly? They’d seen worse than this on a lot occasions. What made this one any different than the others?

Sam wanted to ask him if he was okay but he knew Mick wouldn’t appreciate him doing so in front of the team and Jack. So he decided he’d save it for later when they were alone. But in the mean time…he decided it was best if Mick wasn’t alone. And beings he couldn’t go with him, he needed to stay and examine the bodies further, he sent Gina. 

“Alright. Gina. You go with him. Two sets of eyes are better than one.” 

With that Mick and her took off to search the surrounding areas for clues. Clues that Mick knew they wouldn’t find.

****

After they left John came forward and crouched down beside Coop. 

“Coop, something’s wrong with Mick.” John kept his voice low so they couldn’t be overheard.

“Yeah. I know. And as soon as I can get him alone I intend to find out what it is.” His eyes never left Mick as the kid walked away with Gina.

“I’ve never seen him like this Coop. He’s never rattled by anything but when he saw that brand…he looked like he’d seen a ghost.” 

“You think he knows something?” John asked.

“Yeah. I do. But getting Mick to talk about his past is like trying to move a brick wall with a toothpick. Damn near impossible.” John just about laughed at Coop’s comparison. He was right though. Mick kept his past just that. The past. But if anyone could get the kid to talk it was Coop. 

****

Getting away from the bodies didn’t help Mick like he’d thought it would. He couldn’t seem to calm himself down and after a few minutes of trying and not succeeding he decided there was only one way to ease his fears. Or make them worse…but he had to know. 

“Hey Gina. Let’s spread out. We’ll cover more ground that way.” Mick hoped she would take the bait. He needed some privacy to make a phone call.

“Alright. Will do. Then we can switch later and make sure neither of us missed anything.”

Mick nodded and then headed farther out into the woods so that Gina or the others wouldn’t be able to over hear his conversation.

When he was finally alone Mick dialed a number he hadn’t dialed in years. But it was still as familiar to him as breathing. 

He had to wait several rings before a man with a deep voice finally picked up on the other end. 

“McBride here.” Mick closed his eyes upon hearing that voice. It cut like a knife to hear it again. It sounded so much like Jeff’s voice… But Mick forced the pain aside and spoke up. 

“Captain. It’s Mick. Mick Rawson.” There was a long pause and then that deep voice grew gruff with affection.

“Mick? How the hell are you son? It’s been forever since I’ve heard from you.”

“I’m fine sir. I uh…I need a favor.” 

“A favor? Anything for you kid.” 

“Can you check up on someone for me?” 

“Sure. Who are we checking up on?”

“Monroe. James Monroe.” Things went dead silent on the other end of the line. You couldn’t even hear McBride breathing. 

After a long silence he finally spoke up.

“You real sure about that son?”

“Yeah. Yeah I am. I just finished looking at two bodies with his mark on them. If there’s any chance at all this bastard isn’t dead like we think he is…I’ve got to know sir.”

“Alright. Give me a few minutes to get in touch with some of my contacts and I’ll see if they’ve heard anything. I’ll call you back as soon as I find out anything.”

“Alright. Thanks.”

“Hey Mick…”

“Yeah?” 

“It’s good to hear from you again kid.”

“Same here sir.”

With that they hung up. 

If anyone could find the information that Mick needed it would be Nathan McBride. The man had resources that not even the Pentagon or Inter Pool had. But then that was why he was the head of the old black ops team Mick used to run with. 

“Mick?” Mick spun around at Gina’s voice. He hadn’t heard her come up behind him.

“Who was that on the phone?”

“A friend. I told them I was in the middle of a case and couldn’t talk right now.” Shit. He hated lying. Especially when it came to his friends or Sam. 

“Oh. Okay. Well I didn’t see anything back there. It was clean as a whistle just like the rest of the scene.”

“Alright. Let’s go over this area then. I doubt we’ll find anything here either but it’s worth a look.” 

With that Mick sat about helping Gina look for clues and waiting on that call back from Nathan.

But the wait wasn’t long. His cell phone rang about ten minutes later and he didn’t have to look at the caller id to know it was Nathan. 

“Hey Gina. I’ve got to take this alright.”

“Alright.” Frowning she nodded and then went back to searching the area all the while thinking that who ever was on that phone must be pretty dang important for Mick to answer while in the middle of a case…

****

“Yeah. What’d you find?”

“My contacts don’t have any hard evidence yet but there have been bodies popping up with his mark on them for the last three years.” Mick paled at that bit of news. “The guys are looking into it as we speak. None of us have seen or heard anything about the bastard resurfacing in years but then again no ones been looking for him either. Like you we all thought he was dead. So we’ve had no reason to look. But we are now.”

“And Mick…for gods sake son. Lay low until me and the boys can find out more. If he catches wind of you…He’s going to want blood.” 

No shit. Mick thought. That was the understatement of the year. 

“I will. And thanks Captain. I appreciate it.”

“Don’t mention it. I’ll keep you up to date with any new information the guys find.”

“Alright thanks.”

With that Mick hung up and ran a hand through his hair. Shit. Shit. Shit. What the hell was he going to do now? 

*****

It didn’t take long to finish up the scene after that. Jack had been right. Whoever had done this was a professional. Of that there was no doubt. There was nothing…not a fiber or hair to be found. Not even a footprint or semen left behind inside or on the bodies. And just like the FBI Sam found himself with nothing to go on, just a brand and traces of an unknown drug that had been found in all of the victim’s systems according to Jack. 

It was cases like these that Sam hated the most. Because his hands were left tied. Meaning all that he could do was stand back and wait until the bastard slipped up and left behind some evidence. 

Damn. This was not going to be what Jack wanted to hear. 

Sighing tiredly he stood up walked with Jack back towards the van where his team was waiting for him. 

“I’m sorry Jack. My hands are tied on this one. But I’m going to try to run a trace on the drug. If it’s an unknown drug that means it’s most likely rare and if we can pinpoint what it is maybe we can get a lock on where it’s coming from and trace it back to it’s source. But even that’s a long shot if it’s been on the market and sold to numerous people.” 

“Yeah. That’s the conclusion we came to too. It’s a long shot Sam. I know it is. But we’ve got to try. The body count is up to 30 now and it’s been going on for three years now. Most of these kids we’ve been finding…they’ve been ones no one is going to miss. Runaways… prostitutes…who ever is doing this is being extremely careful so that they’re not reported until it’s too late.”

“We’ll find him Jack. One way or another we’ll find this bastard.” 

At that Jack stopped and looked at his old friend. And when he looked into his eyes he was reminded again of the reason he always ran to Sam Cooper and his team every time he found himself unable to solve a case. Which wasn’t very often. They may have been unconventional and worked below the radar but they got the job done. One way or another they always got the job done. But Jack wasn’t so sure about this one. Something about this case sat ill with him and it wasn’t just the fact that dead kids kept popping up. No something told him this case was much bigger than a simple serial killer. Something told him this one was going to be a bad one.

***  
Mick was silent on the ride back. He barely heard a word the others said as he stared out the window of the SUV trying to figure out what he was going to tell Coop and the others. If he told them the truth… 

Mick squeezed his eyes shut tight at that thought. That wasn’t an option. They couldn’t know the truth. Especially Coop. He wouldn’t be able to handle it if Sam knew the truth. But he had to give them something to go. They were working blind and Mick knew it. And they’d keep working blind too until Mick gave them the information they needed. The guys that were behind this…they didn’t mess up. They didn’t take chances and they really were professionals just like Sam had said. It was how they’d stayed beyond the law’s reach and off their radar for so many years. And it was why Mick had been called into get rid of them all those years ago because no one else could…

Damn…they were going to ask questions if he told them what he knew. But not telling them wasn’t an option. He wasn’t going to stand by and wait for another kid to be brutally raped and murdered like that again if there was anything he could do about it. And there was something he could do about it…

“Coop…” Mick’s voice was quiet when he spoke. “I know the guy you’re looking for.”

Everyone in the van seemed to go quiet at that and they all turned to look at him waiting for him to elaborate. 

Shit. Okay. He could do this. He’d tell them what they needed to know and nothing more. 

“I…I’ve seen the brand before. The man you’re looking for…his name is James Monroe.”

“What? Mick how do you know this?” Gina looked at him confused. Why hadn’t Mick spoke up sooner back at the scene when the FBI was there? 

“I know because I was assigned to take him out a long, long time ago. It was a few years before I met Coop. Monroe is the leader of a massive drug/slavery cartel. No one has ever been able to get enough evidence on him to take him down. The rare few who do manage to get it disappear.”

“Then if you were assigned to take him out how is it he’s still alive? You’ve never missed a mark. At least that’s what Coop’s always told us.” 

Mick laughed bitterly… “Yeah well…Coop never knew about Monroe. I sort of failed to mention the bastard.” And with good reason too. But he didn’t say that last part.

Coop watched Mick carefully as he spoke. Yes he had failed to mention Monroe, but why? Sam knew the kid had secrets. Hell they all did. Coop knew that. But why had Mick kept something like this from them when he’d first seen the brands? And why had he looked so shaken up back there at the crime scene? It wasn’t like Mick to get rattled by a dead body. He’d seen too many of them in his young life to let something like that bother him. 

“Is Monroe doing the killings or do you know?” Sam asked.

“No. Monroe isn’t the one doing the killing. It’s not his style. It’s most likely his right hand man Dan Paine. He’s the clean up guy for Monroe. And those kids back there…it’s just a guess but they were probably part of his sex slave ring. He usually kills the ones he can’t get rid of, after he tires of them anyways.”

Jesus. Coop thought. This was bad. Real bad. If those kids were connected to Monroe like Mick seemed to think they were then this meant they weren’t just dealing with a killer. They were dealing with an extremely dangerous and powerful drug cartel. He had to talk to Jack and he had to talk to him soon to let him know what they were dealing with. 

“Alright. I’ll give Jack a call when we get back to headquarters and let him know and Mick…one more thing. How’d you miss? You never miss?” Coop had been wondering about that. In all the years he’d known Mick. He’d never known him to miss his target. Never.

“I was having a bad day Coop. A real bad day…” Mick couldn’t keep the bitterness out of his voice at that and with that said he went back to staring out the window of the SUV trying his damnedest not to remember just how bad of a day it had really been. 

***

The rest of the trip back to headquarters was spent in silence and when they got there Mick was relieved. He needed to work. He needed something…anything to keep him busy. If he was busy he couldn’t think. And if he couldn’t think he wouldn’t have to relive the memories of his time with Monroe all over again. 

Mick got out of the van and the others followed. He could feel Sam’s eyes on him as they walked inside and he knew it was only going to be a matter of time before he took him aside and asked him what the hell was going on. It was a confrontation Mick wasn’t looking forward to. He didn’t want to lie to Sam. But he couldn’t tell him everything. He couldn’t. 

Once they got to the office John spoke up.

“So what now Coop? You want me to run down to the lab and see what they can tell us about the drug found in the victims systems?”

“Yeah. Why don’t you do that and take Gina with you.” So I can talk to Mick…alone. That last part went unsaid but John didn’t have to hear it to know it. But Mick obviously heard it though because he got up ready to follow them when Coop stopped him. 

“Not so fast Mick. You and me need to talk.” Mick stopped at that and made no move to follow John and Gina out the door. Instead he turned around slowly to face Sam.

“About what Coop?”

“Don’t play games with me Mick. You and I both know there’s more to this than you’re saying. Talk to me kid. Please. Whatever it is it spooked you bad out there today. You looked like you’d seen a ghost.” 

Mick just looked at Sam for a few minutes and when he couldn’t do it anymore he walked over to the window to stare down at the city below.

“Yeah Coop a ghost. That’s exactly what I saw. A man who’s supposed to be dead… So yeah I’m a little shook up. Especially after seeing those kids.”

“Mick, you and I both know you’ve seen worse than that. Now what the hell’s got you so scared?” 

Mick couldn’t answer that. More to the point he wouldn’t answer that. So in order to detour Sam from digging any deeper into his past he brought up the other thing that had him so rattled. 

“Look Sam.” Mick spun to face him. “I won’t deny it yeah I’m scared. But the reason I’m scared is because you don’t know Monroe. People who dig into his business…they disappear Sam. And you guys…you’re not just my damn team. You’re my family. And the idea of you guys going up against someone like Monroe…it scares me Sam. I’ve seen what this bastard can do and those kids…they had it easy compared to some of his victims that I’ve seen before. And if you guys end up like that or worse…” Mick clenched his jaw shut. Dammit. They had no idea just how much worse it could get and if anything happened to any of his team…he’d never forgive himself. They had no idea what they were digging into or just how dangerous it really was. 

Damn. He needed space. He couldn’t do this right now. “Look Sam I’ve got to get some air. I’ll be back in a bit.” With that Mick grabbed his coat and left leaving Sam there more worried that he had been before.

Sam watched him go knowing his lover was hurting and scared but not knowing how to help him until he opened up about whatever was really going on. And he knew there was a lot more going on than Mick was saying…

***

“Hey Coop. Where’s Mick?” Gina asked. Her and John had just gotten back from the lab. Just like they’d expected, the lab techs still hadn’t found anything new out about the drug. So they’d come back up to the office only to find Coop looking more worried than when they’d left and Mick no where to be found.

“He’ll be back in a few minutes. He said he needed some air. They have anything new for us?” 

“No not a thing. The only thing they know about it for sure is that it’s a very powerful aphrodisiac.” John tossed the lab results down onto the table and sat down. Gina did the same, taking the seat beside John.

“Is Mick alright Sam?” John couldn’t keep his own worries hidden. Mick was his best friend and if there was one thing John hated it was seeing his friends in pain and not being able to do a damn thing about it.

“I don’t know John. He won’t talk to me. He wants us to back off this case.” 

“What?” John couldn’t believe it. Mick wanted them to back off this case? What the hell? It was something the sniper had never done before. Out of all of them Mick was the one who never backed down from anything. Not even Sam had a will like Mick’s. Especially when it came to solving cases involving kids.

“Yeah I know. I can’t believe it either. Something about Monroe’s got Mick spooked John. Really spooked. So much so that he doesn’t want us taking this case.”

“Why didn’t he tell you about Monroe Sam? I didn’t think you two kept secrets from each other.” Gina asked gently.

“I don’t know. But then there’s a lot about Mick that I don’t know, things that he would never talk about. Things that happened to him before we met.” 

Sighing tiredly, Sam stood up. “Well guys. We’ve done all we can do for today. Why don’t we call it a day and go home?”

“What about the case? Are we going to stay on it?” John stood up. 

“Yeah we are. And we’re going to do it like we do any other case. Even if it doesn’t sit well with Mick this guy has to be stopped.” Ignoring Mick’s warning left Sam with a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach because the kid was very seldom wrong about stuff like this. But what was Sam supposed to do? Sit back and watch more kids get murdered? He couldn’t do that anymore than Mick could. And they both knew it.

“Alright then. We’ll see you in the morning. And Sam…” Gina paused on her way to the door and turned to look at him, those blue eyes of hers never missing a thing. 

“Yeah?” 

“There was something Mick didn’t mention and I was wondering why? He said he knows Monroe and his MO. So why didn’t he mention the drug? Test results showed it had been used in almost all of the victims over the years.”

“I don’t know. Maybe he forgot about it or like us doesn’t know the name of it either. I’ll ask him when he gets back.” 

“Alright. Later.” With that Gina followed John out the door, leaving Coop alone with his thoughts. 

***

A about twenty minutes later after John and Gina had left Coop decided to go in search of Mick. The kid still hadn’t come back and he was beginning to get worried. But that worry was quickly quelled when he found him in the gym beating the hell out of a punching bag.

Damn…how long had the Mick been at it? He was soaked in sweat. 

“Thought I’d find you down here.” Coop said quietly as he walked out onto the matt where the punching bag was dangling from the end of a very long rope.

“What are you doing down here Coop? I thought I made it clear I needed some air.” 

At that Mick slammed the bag with a hard right hook and Coop caught it, stilling it and effectively putting an end to Mick’s little work out.

“You did make it clear but I was worried about you.” Coop said softly.

“I’m fine Coop. Really. How many times do I have to say it?” Mick yanked off the boxing gloves and ran a hand through his sweat soaked hair. He couldn’t deal with this right now. He’d come down here to the gym to get things off his mind not talk about them.

“You’re not fine Mick. And we both know it. Talk to me baby. Tell me what’s going on. Please.” Coop let the punching bag fall away and moved forward towards Mick who was now standing with his head lowered, eyes on the floor.

“I can’t Sam.”

“You can’t or you won’t?” Sam gently lifted his chin so that Mick would look at him. Those dark brown eyes were swirling with love and fear as he looked at Sam silently begging him not to press the issue.

“Both.” Sam barely heard that soft whisper but when he did his heart clenched at it. There was pain in that voice. Pain and sadness, neither of which Sam understood. But it didn’t matter he told himself. What mattered was that Mick needed him. So he did what he’d been longing to do all day. He took Mick into his arms and held him close. 

Mick clung tightly to Coop. He hadn’t realized just how much he’d been needing this, how much he’d been needing Sam to hold him. But he did now and he held on tight needing the silent comfort Coop offered.

“Come on baby. Let’s go home. You need to rest. We both do.” With that Sam put his arm around Mick’s shoulders, pulling him close and headed for home. 

*****

Vienna, Mexico

It was a rainy night in Vienna, Mexico. Therefore there wasn’t a lot of activity to be found going on in the streets below James Monroe’s compound. But still he looked out of his third story window watching the people below scamper like mice to get out of the rain.

His cold gray eyes were so intent on watching them he almost didn’t hear Paine’s knock on his door.

Turning he called out for the other man to come in. 

“What is it Paine?” 

“I think there’s something you’re going to want to see boss.” Monroe’s eyes narrowed at that.

“What?”

Paine switched on the TV that sat in the far corner of Monroe’s office. He seldom watched it but he found he needed it to keep tabs on the media from time to time.

He watched as Paine flipped it to a news station.

“Late last night two bodies were discovered about 20 miles outside of Chicago. Police think the two deaths maybe related to a long string of murders that have taken place over the last several years. The names of the victims…” The reporter went on but Monroe ignored her. Instead he’d turned his attention to the people in the background, it having been caught by a face he hadn’t seen in years.

Son of a bitch…after all these years of trying to track the little bastard down…he pops up on a TV screen? Now what were the chances of that happening? 

“Well, well…if it isn’t our little friend…” A dark little smile played at the corner of Monroe’s mouth. He couldn’t take his eyes off of the boy. He was still as beautiful as he remembered. He watched him for a few minutes until the kid disappeared off the screen and the reporter moved on to another story. Monroe clicked the TV off. He scratched his chin for a few minutes thinking and then when an idea occurred to him he spoke.

“Paine…do we still have slaves that need to be disposed of?”

“Yeah boss. There’s two of them left over from the last sale we held. I was going to dispose of them as soon as I was done with them but if you want them taken care of sooner…” The big guy shrugged. It didn’t matter to Paine one-way or the other. They’d long ago ceased to be any fun. 

“No. No I’m glad you haven’t disposed of them yet. They can serve a purpose after all.” 

A slow smile started to spread across Paine’s face. Monroe was planning something and whatever it was he got the feeling it had to do with the little sniper on the TV screen. 

“I think its time we paid Rawson a visit. What do you say Paine?”

“I’d say it’s been a long time coming boss.” 

“Yeah…yeah it has...”

****

Mick didn’t say much on the ride back to Coop’s place. He just sat there staring out the window much like he’d done on the ride back from Chicago. And when they finally reached Sam’s place it was close to 10:00. 

“Sam I’m gonna hit the shower alright.” Mick said quietly.

Sam nodded. “Alright. I’ll fix us something to eat.”

“Don’t bother fixing me anything. I’m not hungry.” Mick said right before he headed into the bathroom.

Sam frowned. Mick needed to eat. He hadn’t eaten anything all day and he had to be hungry. Then again…with the day they’d had…maybe not. Sam shrugged it off letting him get by with it for tonight. But come the morning he was making sure the kid ate something. He was too damn skinny as it was. 

****

 

Mick quietly shut the door to the bathroom and then leaned back against it. God what was he going to do? If Monroe got wind that he was here…oh god. Mick squeezed his eyes shut. He was just going to have to pray that that didn’t happen because he couldn’t just up and leave town, not with his team refusing to let this case go. Monroe was sure to come after them if they dug too deep or got too close to putting him away. And they would. Mick knew his team was the one team that could do it. They were that good. It was why Jack had called them in on this case. 

Dammit. There was no way out of this for him. Not so long as his team was involved in this case. 

Frustrated Mick pushed those thoughts aside and stripped off his sweat soaked t-shirt and when he went to unbutton his jeans he froze as he caught sight of his right shoulder in the mirror. Reaching up he gently touched the faint scar there. It wasn’t a big scar. It just about as long as your middle finger and no wider and it didn’t look anything out of the ordinary, looked just like anyone else who might have had surgery at some point or another. And he had had surgery…to remove a brand. A brand just like the one found on all of the victims. 

Memories flashed…

“Keep him still.” Hands held him down tight keeping him still on the table he was already tied to. Jesus. The son of bitch was going to brand him. 

Mick could feel the hot iron just inches from his flesh. He knew what was coming and tried to brace himself for it but nothing could have prepared him for the searing pain the hot iron brought as it seared it’s way deep into his flesh.

Mick gritted his teeth and slammed his head back on the table, straining not only against the hands that held him down but the ropes that held him too.

He would not cry out. No matter how bad it hurt he wouldn’t give these bastards the satisfaction. And he held tight to that thought through it all praying for an unconsciousness that never came. 

Mick jerked himself back out of them memory. Jesus. He could have sworn he still felt that hot iron searing it’s way into his flesh. 

Shower. He needed a shower. Now. He couldn’t think of this shit right now. He couldn’t.

So Mick finished unbuttoning his pants and when he was finally naked he stepped under the cool spray wishing like hell it could wash away the memories as easily as it could the sweat and the tears.

****  
While Mick was in the shower Sam called Beth to update her on what was going on. It was protocol to keep everyone informed and up to date on whatever case they were currently working on. Well Sam’s protocol anyways. They ran very high-risk assignments and you never knew what kind of trouble you or the team was going to get into. Therefore it paid off to keep everyone in the loop at all times just in case.

Beth answered on the third ring. 

“See Sam…I told you you’d be the first to call.” She sounded smug and rather proud of her self, which made Sam laugh.

“Yeah you did. But admit it…you were close. Very, very close.”

“Alright, alright.” Beth grumbled. “ I was close to calling you but Jesus Sam, I’m bored off my ass over here. How can anyone just sit at the beach in a lawn chair and do nothing but work on their tan? I’m going crazy over here.”

Sam rolled his eyes at that. Only Beth would complain about having to take a vacation. The woman couldn’t just sit back, relax, and do nothing. It wasn’t in her. She had to be working or doing something to keep her busy at all times or she wasn’t happy. 

“Beth. It’s a vacation. Sitting back and relaxing is what you’re supposed to do. Try it. It’s not as painful as you think.”

Beth growled. “Anyways. To change the subject…” Sam laughed. That was what Beth always said when she didn’t like where the conversation was going. “Where did you run off to last night anyways? I saw you leave and then a few minutes later Mick came in and said he was going with you.” 

“I…uh…” Crap… 

“Coop…did you finally do what I think you did?” Beth’s voice was suspicious.

“Depends on what you think I did?”

“Did you and Mick…you know? Did you finally…?”

Sam sighed. Beth wouldn’t let this go until she got the answers she wanted and he knew it. 

“Yeah. We did. I finally…I finally told him Beth. After yesterday I just…I couldn’t let him go on not knowing the truth.” Beth had always known how Sam felt about Mick. She’d picked up on it the first day she’d ever met the two of them. 

“Well it’s about time!” 

Sam laughed at that. Beth had been trying to get the two of them together for years now.

“Yeah…yeah it is.” Sam smiled at the thought. It was past time actually. 

Just as it was past time for Mick to be getting out of the shower… Sam frowned at that and looked down the hall towards the bathroom wondering what the hell was taking Mick so long. The kid never took this long in the bathroom. Shrugging it off and deciding not to worry about it he went back to their conversation. 

“Anyways on to the real reason I called you. We’ve got a new case.”

“A new case?” Was that hopefulness he heard in Beth’s voice? He shook his head in disbelief. Only Beth could be happy at the thought of more work…

“Yeah and Beth…it’s a bad one, a real bad one.” Sam grimaced as he remembered just how bad it had been. God…those kids…he didn’t think he’d ever be able to get those images out of his head.

“Let me guess. It involves kids.” Beth hated these types of case almost as much as Sam and Mick did. They were always the hardest.

“Yeah, two boys about 15 or 16 years old. They’d been beaten until their backs were shredded almost beyond recognition and they’d been raped too. Brutally Beth. I’m telling you if they hadn’t of been killed they would of died from the hemorrhaging.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah.”

“Did you guys find anything at the scene?”

“No it was clean. No clues, no DNA, no witnesses. Nothing. Just like it was at all the other scenes the FBI has gone over in the past.”

“This has happened before?”

“Yeah, according to Jack they’ve been chasing this guy for over two years now. And all they have to go on is a brand and an unknown aphrodisiac that they’ve found in all of the victims.”

“And Beth…” When Sam didn’t finish Beth got worried. 

“Sam what is it? What’s wrong?”

“Back at the crime scene…Mick…he recognized the brands that were seared in to each of the victims shoulders. He says he knows the guy we’re looking for.”

“What? How?” Beth was shocked. Mick knew this guy?

“He told us the guy we’re looking for is James Monroe. He’s the head of a massive drug/slavery cartel. Apparently Mick was assigned to take him out a few years before he met me. Somehow or another though the mission went wrong and Monroe got away.”

“Jesus. So what you’re telling me is this is all part of something much bigger than just a serial killer?”

“Yeah. It’s starting to look that way.”

“And Beth…there’s more.” Sam glanced towards the bathroom again making sure Mick was still in there. He was. “Mick wants us to back off this case.”

“What? Mick asked you to back off?” Sam could hear the worry in Beth’s voice now. It was the same worry he’d been feeling too.

“Yeah. Something about this case has him spooked Beth, really spooked and he won’t talk to me about.” 

“That’s not like him Sam and we both know it.” Beth knew Mick and Sam didn’t have secrets. The two of them had been too close for too long. And the few secrets they did have from each other were about Mick’s past. Beth knew that much. Mick never talked about his past and when someone tried to coax it out of him he clamed up or changed the subject. 

“Yeah I know but I don’t know what to do Beth. I hate seeing him like this and not knowing how to help him.” 

“Give him time Sam. He’ll come around eventually. If there’s anyone that can get Mick to talk it’s you. He trusts you and when he’s ready he’ll talk to you. Just give him time.”

“Alright. Thanks Beth. Look I’ve got to go alright?”

“Alright. Take care of him Sam and take care of yourself while you’re at it. That last part is something you don’t do too well you know? You’re so good at looking after the rest of us that you forget to do it for yourself.”

“Why do it for myself Beth?” Sam grinned. “That’s what I got you for.” God knew he didn’t need anyone looking after him when he had Beth around. The woman babied him and Mick to no end. Her and Gina were bad about that.

Beth just laughed.

“Good night Sam.”

“Night Beth. I’ll call you tomorrow with updates.”

“Alright. Bye.”

“Bye.”

With that Sam hung up and then once again looked down the hall towards the bathroom. What the hell was taking Mick so long? The kid had been in there over a half hour now. Maybe it was time to go check on him… 

***

Meanwhile in the shower Mick let the hot water run down over his head and shoulders while he braced both his hands on the shower wall in front of him.

Memories flashed again…

This time he was in Monroe’s own personal chambers. 

He was slowly waking up from the last round that Monroe and Paine had put him through and the first thing he became aware of was the pain. Oh God…he hurt…he hurt so bad his vision danced and he could feel himself threatening to pass out again. 

The next thing he became aware of was something warm trickling down his legs. Looking down he forced himself to focus through the pain for a minute. Blood…it looked like blood slowly pooling on the floor beneath him. Jesus…

“Well, well Rawson, nice of you to join us again. There for a minute I thought Paine had been too hard on you.” 

Weaving slightly Mick slowly looked up to find Monroe standing only inches in front of him and Paine was standing not far behind the other man.

“Now are you ready to cooperate or are we going to have to repeat this little procedure all over again?” 

Mick glared at him. 

“Go to hell Monroe. I’ll die before I ever give you what you want.” Mick may not of been in any shape to put up a fight but he could fight back this way. If he didn’t give Monroe what he wanted then in a way… he’d won. And no matter how bad things got he was determined to cling to that. 

“Alright then…have it your way. Paine…did you bring it with you?” Monroe never took his eyes off Mick’s as he asked the question.

“Yeah. I brought it. How much you want me to give him?” Paine pulled out a syringe filled full of something. And at the sight of it Mick began to get nervous. What the hell were they going to do to him now? 

“Give him 1cc to start with and we’ll go from there.”

At that Mick clamped his jaw shut and glared at Monroe as Paine yanked his head back and to the side exposing his neck.”

“I’m gonna enjoy this boy.” Paine growled next to his ear before plunging the syringe home.

Mick gasped as the drug burned it’s way through his system. Jesus. Fuck. What the hell was this shit? It burned like crazy and almost instantly his body started to feel funny. What the hell? He could feel himself hardening. Oh shit…what was happening to him?

Monroe grinned darkly as he watched Mick gasped in pain at the drug that was now burning through his system.

“In case you’re wondering Rawson…this here is a very, very special little drug of my own. One of my scientists cooked it up for me and it’s called Whore’s Dust. It’s a very powerful aphrodisiac that’s ten times more addictive than heroine. One little shot of this stuff and a man will do anything to get off. And I do mean anything Rawson, and that’s what you’re going to do. You see you’re going to give me what I want or I’m going to keep upping the dosage. And trust me boy…in a few minutes you’re really not going to want that to happen.”

“Fuck you, you bastard.” Mick gasped again at the pain that shot through his groin. Jesus Christ. He couldn’t ever remember being so hard in his life. 

“Paine… Get the cock ring. We don’t want our little friend here coming too soon. That would spoil our fun.”

Paine grinned darkly and went to grab the cock ring that had been hanging on the wall with all the other instruments.

Oh shit…Mick had to force himself not to show the fear he was feeling. If they put that thing on him and kept upping the dosage of the drug… It was going to make what they’d just done to him seem like a walk in the park. Oh God…

Paine handed Monroe the cock ring and with that the big man grabbed a hold of him again and held him still while Monroe snapped it in place. It looped tightly around the top of his nuts and then again at the base of his cock effectively stemming the urge to cum. Jesus there’d be no release for him so long as that thing was on him and he knew it.

Mick squeezed his eyes shut at the realization. He didn’t know if he could do this and those fears were only made worse when Monroe reached for an odd looking instrument that was laying on the tray next to the wall of implements.

“Now for the fun part.” Monroe grinned darkly. “Do you know what a sparker is Rawson?”

Mick didn’t say a word. He just glared at the bastard and stayed silent trying his damnedest to ignore the burning need in his groin.

“No…well let me enlighten you. You see this little probe?” He held up a long thin probe that was connected to a box by a long wire. “It’s made to be jammed up a man’s ass and held directly against his prostate while the box is used to turn it up to three speeds, high, medium, or low. And it’s very, very effective in making a man need to cum. Weather he wants to or not. Very much like the drug I just gave you. And you Rawson…you’re about to find out why it’s my favorite toy.”

Mick felt sick at that. Oh shit… There was no way he was going to be able to fight this and he knew it.

But fight he did. He didn’t go quietly when Paine wrapped a large muscled arm tight around his throat and hauled him back against that big barreled chest. No he slammed his head back hard into the other man’s face and fought them with everything he had but it was a loosing battle and he knew it. 

“I’m gonna enjoy this pretty boy.” And with that Paine rammed that damn thing deep inside of him. Mick gasped in pain. Oh Jesus. It hurt…

“Now let’s see what you’re really made of Rawson…”

With that the bastard flipped the switch and electricity shot through Mick’s ass and slammed straight into his prostate. He couldn’t stop the strangled scream that was ripped from him…

*******

Mick was jerked back out of the nightmare when he heard knocking on the bathroom door. Jesus. Sam, thank God. 

Mick shut off the water and reached for a towel but his hands were shaking so badly he couldn’t pick the damn thing up. 

Get a grip Mick…if Coop saw him like this… He had to get a hold of himself.

Taking a moment he forced himself to calm down and grab the towel, which he then wrapped around his waist and went to the door. Opening it he found Sam there waiting for him.

“Sam. Sorry. I…I must of lost track of time. You uh…you got any sweats I can borrow? I don’t have any fresh clothes with me.” Mick hoped like hell Sam didn’t notice how shakey he was. 

“Yeah, I do. Mick, are you…are you sure you’re all right? You look pale again.” Sam had expected the kid to look and feel a little better after taking a shower but if anything he looked worse.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just need some sleep that’s all. It’s something neither of us has had a lot of lately. What do you say we go get some?” Mick was lying to him and Sam knew it.  
But he gave the kid the out he was looking for. Mick had had enough for tonight and whatever was wrong…Beth was right. Mick would tell him when he was ready. This wasn’t something he could force and if he did the kid would just clam up tighter. 

“Alright.” With that Mick walked past him and Sam watched him go more worried now than he’d been before.

****

Mick was thankful Sam had let it go. He wasn’t sure what he would of done had Sam pressed the issue.

Dropping the towel Mick slipped on some sweats and crawled in to bed. He was beat. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so exhausted. 

Sam seemed to sense it too because he crawled in bed beside Mick and pulled the kid into his arms so that Mick’s back was to his front. And again Mick tried to understand how it was that he didn’t feel any fear when he was with Sam. Every time he’d ever tried to be with a man again the fear had always taken over, but with Sam…that fear wasn’t there. It had never been there. Just like it hadn’t been there with Jeff. Why? 

Last night when they’d made love yeah he’d been scared at first, scared that he wouldn’t be able to give Sam what he wanted. What he needed… But when Sam had touched him…it had been like it had been with Jeff. The fear wasn’t there but that certainty that Sam would never hurt him was.

Was it because he trusted Sam? Or was it something else? He didn’t know. He just knew that laying here in Sam’s arms everything else seem to fall away. All the pain…all the fear…it wasn’t there when he was with him. And for the first time all day he felt himself finally relax. 

***

Sam knew the minute Mick finally fell asleep. He felt the younger man’s body relax in his arms and his breathing evened out. And it wasn’t long after that that Sam followed him.

****

It was late…they’d been at him for hours again. They’d shot him full of more of the Whore’s Dust a few minutes ago and his body burned with the need for release. But it was a release that never came. 

They kept him on edge turning the sparker from low to high…working him until he was thought he was going to die from the need to cum. His balls hurt so bad…and his cock…Christ. The cock ring had it bound up tight keeping him from coming.

How long were they going to keep doing this? He couldn’t take much more of this.

Another jolt of electricity slammed into him and again his cock strained with the need to cum and his balls clenched tight. Jesus. Fuck. His eyes rolled back and he whimpered at the pain.

“What’s the matter Rawson? You having second thoughts?” 

Mick clenched his teeth tightly at the pain and gritted out his only reply. “Go to hell Monroe.” 

Monroe laughed. “Damn. Boy…you’ve got spunk. I’ll give you that. Everyone one else would have broken by now. But you…you continue to impress me. I never dreamed I’d find someone who could hold out this long against me.”

Monroe reached out and gently caressed his sweaty face. “You’re beautiful like this Rawson. Really beautiful.” Mick flinched at his touch and tried to draw away from it but Paine held him in place.

“I’ll bet you’re even more beautiful when you cum.” Monroe smiled darkly, those dark gray eyes staring into his own. 

“What do you say we find out eh?” Mick stomach sank at those words and when he went pale Monroe just laughed.

“Paine…” With that one word Paine removed the sparker and stepped back and Monroe took his place behind him.

“You know…you keep telling me to go to hell…and maybe I will.” He grabbed Mick’s hair and yanked his head back so he could lean in close to his ear. ”But tonight…tonight I’m going to take you there with me.” With that he slammed brutally into Mick. 

Mick gasped at the pain and struggled to breath through it. Oh God it hurt…it hurt so bad that he almost blacked out from it and when Monroe started to thrust in and out of him…it was even worse because he could feel his body responding to it. And he hated that more than he hated Monroe fucking him.

“You feel that boy? Huh? That’s your body telling you how much you like this. How much you want this…”

Mick wanted to tell the bastard to go fuck himself but for the moment the breath was knocked out of him and the only thing he could do was grunt at the pain as Monroe slammed in to him again and again.

“What’s the matter Rawson? That hurt? Huh?” Monroe slammed into him hard for extra emphasis. 

Mick gasped in pain again at the brutal thrust and prayed like hell Monroe would just hurry up and finish. 

But it wasn’t to be that easy. Just as Mick had known it wouldn’t be.

Monroe snaked his hands down Mick’s sides and reached around in front of him to undo the cock ring and Mick felt himself start to panic.

No, no he couldn’t…he couldn’t cum with this bastard inside him. He couldn’t. God please don’t let him cum. Not now. Mick squeezed his eyes shut tight at that and knew with a sinking feeling that he wasn’t going to be able to stop this. But he fought for as long as he could until the Whore’s Dust combined with Monroe’s brutal fucking became too much for him. 

Then with a final thrust Monroe forced Mick’s orgasm out of him. He came and he came hard, his balls drawing up tight and his cock shooting until there was nothing coming out. Oh Jesus. Oh God… What had he done? 

Some part of Mick’s brain knew what he’d done wasn’t his fault but another part of it was in denial. How could he have done this? How could he have cum while Monroe was fucking him? What was wrong with him? Already he could feel his cock hardening again and he had a sick, sinking feeling that it wouldn’t be long before the Whore’s Dust kicked in again.

“See Rawson. I told you, you wanted this.” Monroe wiped his hand off on a towel that was hanging on one of the racks. “Otherwise you wouldn’t have cum like that.” 

The bastard walked up to him again, this time in front and when he did he gently took Mick’s chin in his hand and lifted it up forcing the younger man to look at him.

“Now…I’ve got to be going. I’ve got a very important meeting to keep. But don’t worry…I won’t leave you alone…” He grinned at that. “Paine…he’s all yours for the rest of night. Just remember…don’t leave any lasting marks on this one. He’s special.” With that Monroe left them alone together.

Mick’s stomach clenched at that. Fuck. Paine was worse than Monroe and the man was still pissed at him from earlier for busting up his nose. 

Oh God…this was going to hurt…

***

Sam was awakened by soft whimpers coming from beside him. What the hell? Forcing his sleep deprived brain to function he sat up only to realize that the whimpers were coming from Mick.

At some time or another during the night the kid had kicked the covers off and now he was tossing and turning restlessly.

He seemed to be caught up in some sort of a nightmare.

“Mick…baby…wake up. Come on kid. Wake up… You’re having a bad dream.” Coop gently shook his shoulder trying to rouse him. When he didn’t get any response, Sam tried again.

“Come on Mick wake up.” 

It didn’t work though. The only thing it succeeded in doing was making it worse. 

“Mick.” Coop said his name louder this time. “Mick, come on kid. You’ve got to wake up.” Sam shook him again but this time harder and this time it worked.

The kid shot upright in bed, eyes wild and full of fear and he was breathing hard. 

It took him a few minutes to get a hold of him self and to realize where he was and when he did he turned to stare at Sam in confusion.

“Sam?” Mick’s voice was hoarse and those eyes…they were so full of fear that it made Sam’s heart clench.

“Yeah baby it’s me. You were having a nightmare.” Sam reached out to touch him but Mick drew back from him. At first he thought it was because he was scared but he soon learned differently.

“I’m gonna be sick…” With that Mick got up and ran to the bathroom. He barely made it to the toilet in time and when he did he lost it, heaving and retching until there was nothing left to come up. But Sam was there, resting a gentle hand on his shoulder and trying to soothe him.

“Easy baby. Easy. Don’t fight it, just let it come up.” Sam crouched down beside him and held him through it. 

Sam winced as he watched Mick get sick. Damn…what the hell had that dream been about? If it had made Mick this sick…shit. 

When Mick finally stopped retching Sam pulled him back from the toilet and into his arms, leaning back against the bathroom wall on the floor.

“Better?” Sam asked.

Mick didn’t say anything, he couldn’t. So he just nodded, resting his head against Sam’s chest, hoping that he believed him.

After a few minutes of sitting there and getting his bearings back Mick finally got up and went to the sink. He wiped his mouth with a washcloth and rinsed his mouth out with water. Then he braced both hands on the sink and lowered his head.

God that dream… It had been so real. Like it was happening all over again. He squeezed his eyes shut at the memory.

Only when he felt Coop’s gentle hands on his shoulders did he open them to look at his lover in the mirror. 

“I’m sorry Sam. I didn’t mean to wake you up.” 

“Baby…Listen to me.” Sam turned him around and gently took his chin in his hand so he could make Mick look at him. “You have nothing to be sorry for. This isn’t your fault.”

“Yeah it is Sam just like those kids dying is my fault. If I hadn’t of fucked up Monroe would be dead right now and those kids would still be alive.”

“Yeah maybe Mick. Or maybe another drug lord just as twisted as Monroe would come along and do the same thing. You can’t kill guys like these kid and you know it. They’re like cock roaches, you kill one and ten more come and take their place.” 

Sam was determined to make Mick see that none of this was his fault. He would not let the kid blame himself for this.

“Mick…you can’t blame yourself for this. I don’t. And neither should you. I don’t know what happened on that mission but I know that you did every thing you could to stop that bastard, so don’t you dare blame yourself for this.”

Mick looked at Sam wanting so badly to believe him, to believe that he was right. That this wasn’t really his fault. But deep down inside he knew it was. If he hadn’t of screwed up none of this would be happening right now. 

Sam saw the doubt swirling in those dark brown depths and he knew Mick didn’t believe him. The kid blamed himself…

“Come here baby.” Sam took him into his arms again and held him close. Mick went willingly, needing Sam’s arms around him, especially after that dream. He squeezed his eyes shut against the memories, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t block the images out. 

“Don’t blame yourself for this baby. Please. None of this is your fault. You’ve got to believe that.”

“I can’t Sam…” Came the soft whisper against his chest where his head laid.

A tear slipped free and Mick squeezed his eyes shut trying hard to block the others that wanted to follow.

That soft whisper tore at Sam’s heart. He wanted so badly to ease the guilt and the fears that Mick felt but he’d didn’t know how, not when Mick wouldn’t open up to him.

So holding him close Sam kissed the top of his head gently. 

“Come on kid…lets go back to bed. We’ve still got a few hours before we have to go in to work.” 

With that they went back to bed and even though Sam held him close the rest of the night Mick didn’t go back to sleep. He couldn’t. 

*** 

When morning came Mick slipped out of bed, being careful not to wake Sam. They still had about an hour before work so he went into the kitchen to make them breakfast. Even though he wasn’t hungry he figured Sam would be and after having to put up with all his shit last night he figured the least he could do was make the man breakfast.

So he set about fixing him something to eat and by the time it was done Sam had woken up and was standing in the doorway watching him.

“Hey Sam. I didn’t hear you come in. I was just fixing you something to eat. Hope it’s okay.”

“Yeah it’s alright. Thanks. Have you eaten yet?” Sam watched him closely.

“No. I’m not hungry.” Sam frowned. They were not leaving this house until Mick ate something. Sam didn’t give a damn if the kid was hungry or not. He hadn’t eaten yesterday and he’d let him get by with it. But this time…this time the kid was going to eat something.

“Mick…” Sam narrowed his eyes in disapproval. “You need to eat. Please?” 

Mick looked up at the soft growl and he knew he was pushing it. Sighing tiredly he gave in even though eating was the last thing he felt like doing.

“Alright. I’ll eat.” 

“Thank you.” Mick nodded and then set about filling Sam’s plate along with his own. 

Sam watched him all the while noticing the kid didn’t take much for himself but hell if he could get Mick to choke down something it was better than nothing he decided.

They ate breakfast in silence after that and when they were done Mick cleared their dishes and put them in the sink and then he grabbed his coat off the back of the couch. Sam did the same and they headed out the door towards work.

***

“I called Beth last night while you were in the shower.” Sam broke the silence in the vehicle as they waited for traffic to get a move on. “Just to let her know what’s going on.”

“How’s she handling it?”

“The vacation?” Sam laughed. “About as well as we expected her too. She sounded relieved when I called her.”

Mick gave a small laugh at that. Poor Beth. The woman wasn’t one who could sit around and do nothing. It just wasn’t in her.

“You tell her about us?”

“Didn’t have to. She already knew Mick.” That didn’t surprise him. Beth had been doing her damnedest to try and get the two of them together almost from the moment she’d met them.

After a few moments of silence Sam finally spoke up.

“She’s worried about you, you know. When I told her you didn’t want us to take this case…” 

Shit he’d known Sam was going to bring this up again. 

“Sam, listen to me. There’s a damn good reason I don’t want the team taking this one. Monroe… ” But Sam didn’t let Mick finish.

“Mick I understand why you don’t want us to take this case. I do. Monroe’s a dangerous man and no one’s ever been able to get close to him. And you doubt that even our team will be any different. But I can’t back off this Mick. I can’t. After seeing those two kids yesterday…I can’t just walk away.”

Mick sighed tiredly knowing already that he wasn’t going to get Sam to leave this one alone. Sam couldn’t walk away from this anymore than Mick could walk away from his team. 

“I know.” Mick said quietly. “Just promise me one thing Sam.”

“Anything baby.”

“Promise me if things get bad…you and the team will get out.” 

“I promise Mick. I promise.”

*****

When they arrived at the office it was well past 7:30 am and Gina and John were already there waiting on them.

“Hey Mick.” Gina hugged him. “You feeling better today?”

Mick hugged her back and forced a smile in place. “I’m fine love. You?”

“Good now that you and Coop are here. John and me have been waiting on you guys. What took you so long?”

“Traffic. It was backed up a mile.” Coop said, not at all bothered by Gina hugging Mick. It wasn’t unusual for her or Beth to do that to one of them. Their little family had been together for so long now that none of them were bothered by it anymore.

“Oh. Okay. So did you remember to ask him?”

“Ask me what?” Mick looked between the two of them wondering what in the hell they were talking about. 

Shit. Sam had forgotten about that. He’d been so worried about Mick last night that he’d never thought to ask him if he knew anything about the drug that had been found in the victims. 

Sam was getting ready to open his mouth and ask but Gina beat him to it.

“There was something you didn’t mention yesterday and I was wondering why. You said you know Monroe so why didn’t you mention the drug that’s been found in all of the victims over the years? The lab techs say it’s an aphrodisiac that’s being used but they can’t pinpoint the name of it. They’ve never seen it before.”

Dammit. This was a conversation Mick had been trying to avoid but like the conversation with Sam he’d known it was coming. 

“Sorry. It must have slipped my mind.” Mick hoped like hell they bought that because the last thing he wanted to do was answer any more questions.

“It’s called Whore’s Dust. It’s one of Monroe’s special creations.”

“Special?” John asked.

“Yeah. Its ingredients are hard to come by so Monroe is just about the only one that uses it or sells it.”

“What else makes it so special? What makes it different from any other aphrodisiac? There has to be a reason Monroe had it created specifically because if the ingredients are rare why else would he go through all the trouble of getting them?” Sam asked.

Mick swallowed the bile that was threatening to rise up in his throat. God he really didn’t want to talk about this anymore. Just thinking about the shit was making him sick to his stomach but he answered Sam anyways.

“It’s different because it’s extremely powerful and ten times more addictive than heroine. Monroe uses it to control his victims.” What Mick didn’t say was it also kept them aroused for days on end too. And Monroe liked to use it to spice up his sex slave ring. He claimed some of his buyers got a kick out of it.

Mick got up from the table and went to look out the window staring down at the streets below. Please God let them stop with the questions now… He couldn’t talk about that damn drug anymore. He squeezed his eyes shut against the memories that were threatening to over take him.

“Alright, so now we know what drug is being used. Now we’ve just got to find a way to track Monroe down.” 

“And that there could be a problem.” John said. “According to Garcia this guy has been off the radar for years. I had her look into it this morning while we were waiting for you guys to show up.”

“She couldn’t find anything?” Sam asked.

“Nope.” John folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair.

“And you’re not going to either.” Mick said quietly keeping his back to them while he spoke. “You won’t find Monroe unless he wants you to find him. And trust me…that’s not something you want.” Sam could hear the bitterness in Mick’s voice and he had a sick feeling that the kid was speaking from experience. He hoped and prayed he was wrong but after years of profiling people for a living he’d found that he was pretty accurate at reading them. Even those like Mick who were extremely good at hiding what they felt.

“How’d you find him last time? You said you were sent in to take him out. So that means either you or someone else located him.” Gina asked.

Mick was quiet for a few minutes trying to decide what to tell them. Finally he spoke.

“My old team caught a guy suspected of working for the bastard and they uh…they got the location out of him before Monroe could send someone in to kill him.” Mick didn’t think it was a good idea to elaborate on how they had gotten the information out of the guy. Even for Sam and his team it might seem a little extreme.

“Maybe we could do that if we can find someone who works for him or is suspected of working for him.”

“Yeah we could but it would all be for nothing unless we can prove he’s actually linked to the murders.” Sam told her.

“Damn it. So you were right. No matter how much we hate it all we can do is sit around and wait until this guy messes up.” John growled frustrated.

Mick knew his friend was angry about not being able to make someone pay for what had happened to those two kids but he was relieved that their hands were tied because maybe…just maybe they’d leave this case alone and move on to another one.

“I know John. I know it’s frustrating but as of right now we have nothing to go on. And until we do have something to go on then there’s no case.” John wasn’t the only one frustrated by his inability to do anything. Apparently Sam was too.

“Wait what about the victims? Is there anything linking them?” Gina asked.

No. There wouldn’t be. Mick knew it even before Sam spoke up.

“No. I’ve looked over each of their profiles and there’s nothing linking them. They’re from different back grounds, different states, different races and they have nothing in common except the fact that they’re runaways and prostitutes. Even their ages and their sex differ. But I’m going to have Garcia run a check on them just to make sure I haven’t missed anything.”

“Alright. You want me and John to run down to the morgue and see if the medical examiner has found anything out from the last two victims?”

“Yeah, why don’t you do that while I get Garcia to run this check.”

“Okay.” With that Gina and John left leaving Sam alone with Mick who was still staring out the window.

Coop started to get up and go to him but his cell phone ringing stopped him.

Dammit. What now?

He looked at the caller id and the minute he saw Jack’s number he knew it wasn’t good.

“Cooper here.”

“We’ve got two more dead bodies Sam. They were found just this morning about 15 miles outside Cincinnati. A man who was hiking found them in the woods not far from his place.”

Shit.

Coop looked over at Mick who was still standing at the window but now his head was hanging down leaving no doubt in Sam’s mind that he already knew it was bad news.

“The same mo?”

“Yeah. Same mo. It’s definitely the same guy. And Coop?”

“Yeah?”

“They haven’t been dead long. My guess is just this morning but we won’t know for sure until we get the autopsy reports back.”

“Alright. I’ll get my team together and we’ll be there in a few minutes. And Jack…the name of the drug you’re looking for…it’s called Whore’s Dust.”

There was silence on the other end of the line for a few seconds and then Jack finally spoke up.

“How’d you find that out Sam? I’ve had my guys on this case for three years now and they still don’t know what it is.”

“Does it matter?” Hell, even if it did matter Sam wasn’t about to tell Jack that Mick was the one who’d given him that information. If he did the other man would be hassling the kid for answers and that’s the last thing Mick needed right now.

Jack sighed tiredly on the other end no doubt realizing he wasn’t going to get an answer out of Sam unless he wanted to give it to him.

“No it doesn’t. Look…just get your team and get out here.” With that the other man hung up leaving Sam to carry out the order he’d been given.

Sam stared at his phone for a few minutes the looked up at Mick who still hadn’t moved.

“That was Jack.” Coop’s quiet voice broke the silence in the room.

“They uh…they found two more bodies.”

Mick closed his eyes at that and gripped the windowsill so tightly his knuckles turned white.

“Where?” He gritted out. Not because he was angry at Sam but because he was angry with himself. If he hadn’t of fucked up none of this would be happening right now.

“About 15 miles outside Cincinnati.”

Mick went utterly still at that piece of information and for a moment he forgot how to breathe.

Here? In Cincinnati? Oh God…

Panic threatened to over take him but Mick forced him self to keep his shit together. He had to stay calm. This might be nothing he told himself. It might just be a coincidence. After all part of Monroe’s mo was dumping his victims in different states so that the murders weren’t so noticeable, but this close to Cincinnati? Jesus. Was it just a coincidence? Or was it something more?

“How long have they been there?” Mick needed to know and he needed to know now. If the bodies were fresh…then there was a good possibility that either Paine or Monroe could still be around. But it’d most likely be Paine. Monroe hated to get his hands dirty.

“Jack said it looked like both murders had taken place this morning but he won’t know for sure until he gets the autopsy reports back.”

Shit…then this meant he needed to be careful, really careful. And he had to make sure Sam and the others did the same. He had no way of knowing weather or not if Paine and Monroe were aware of his whereabouts but he was going to play it safe and assume they were. He wasn’t going to risk the lives of his family or the man he loved. 

So when he spoke he spoke low and carefully.

“Sam…I need you to listen to me very carefully alright? I need you and the others to be careful, very, very careful. If those bodies are fresh then Paine or Monroe could still be here and if he catches wind that you’re on to him…” Mick closed his eyes at the thought. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if Monroe got a hold of one of them.

Sam reached out to him then and turned Mick around to face him. Gently he cupped Mick’s chin in his hand and made him look at him. There was a mixture of pain and fear swirling in the younger man’s eyes and it hurt Sam to see it there knowing there was no way he could make it truly go away, at least not until Monroe was caught.

“Listen to me baby.” Sam looked into those dark brown depths as he spoke. “We’re going to be careful all right. I’m going to make sure none of us go anywhere alone and we’ll keep our guns on us at all times. We’ll even do 5 hour check inns and wear bullet proof vests if that’ll make you feel better.”

 

Mick knew Sam meant it. The other man would do whatever it took to keep his team safe. But that didn’t make Mick feel any better. It should have but it didn’t. Knowing what he knew about Monroe…nothing would make him feel better short of a bullet in both Monroe and Paine’s heads. But this was the best that Mick could hope for right now. So he nodded his head and agreed praying it would be enough.

***

Meanwhile down in lab…John was busy talking to the coroner when his cell phone went off. 

Looking at the caller id he realized it was Coop. 

“Hey guys…you mind if I take this?”

“No. Go ahead. I can talk to her.” Gina volunteered. 

“Alright. I’ll be right back.”

He headed outside the doorway to the morgue so he could have some privacy then he answered his phone.

“Yeah Coop?”

“We’ve got another one.” Shit. This wasn’t good. “Where?” 

“About fifteen miles outside Cincinnati. Garcia will send you the exact location on your cells. Me and Mick will meet you and Gina out there alright?”

“Yeah alright.”

“And John…”

“Yeah?”

“Stay together. Don’t go anywhere alone. Do you hear me?”

John frowned at the warning but when Coop gave an order he seldom questioned it because the man was seldom wrong. So he didn’t think twice about his reply.

“Alright. I’ll tell Gina.”

With that Sam hung up leaving John alone and frowning. Why would Coop give an order like that? 

Puzzled John walked back into the morgue and told the girls their little conversation was going to have to wait. They had to go. 

Gina frowned wondering what was going on but saying goodbye she followed John out the double doors. 

“Who was on the phone?” Gina nodded at it questioningly. 

“Coop. He says there been another murder and we’re to meet him and Mick at the crime scene. Garcia should be sending us the location on our cells. He also said we’re to stay together. For some reason he doesn’t want any of us going anywhere alone.”

Gina frowned. What the hell? Just what was going on? This case had to be a bad one if Coop didn’t want them going anywhere alone.

Deciding she’d ask Sam about it later she headed out the building after John and they got into his car and headed out towards the crime scene.

***

By the time Mick and Sam arrived at the location Garcia had given them the feds, local police, and reporters were everywhere. The feds were busy examining the scene and the local police were doing everything they could to keep the reporters back behind the yellow tape that was closing off the area. 

Mick and Sam weaved their way through the crowd and when they got to the yellow tape they were asked to show their badges. They did and when they were okayed they passed under the tape and headed towards Jack who was waiting for them.

“Sam. Mick. Thank you guys for coming out here.” 

“What do have Jack?” Sam asked.

“Two victims. Just like the last time.” They started walking towards the clearing where the two bodies were laying. “And just like the last time our guy didn’t bother to hide the bodies.”

“You guys found anything yet?” 

“No, we’ve got dogs sweeping the area and men spread out all over but they haven’t been able to pick up anything. It’s just like the other scenes. Clean.”

Whatever Jack said after that though Mick didn’t hear it. He’d stopped moving and stopped listening the moment he saw the two bodies laying there in the clearing.

Jesus…it was just like the last scene. 

Two boys not more than 18 or 19 years old were lying there in the open, naked and bloody.  
The first boy couldn’t of been more than 19 or 20. His dark blond hair was matted with blood and someone had beaten him until his back was damn near in shreds. And when Mick’s eyes landed on the kid’s blood caked thighs he knew without a doubt that the boy had been raped, brutally to from the looks of things. It was the same thing with the younger red headed kid who was lying beside him. 

Mick felt sick seeing the two boys lying there and it took everything he had not to throw up right then and there. Jesus…this was his fault. All his fault. These two kids were dead because of him… So many people were dead because of him… 

“Mick?” Mick’s head snapped up at the sound of Sam’s voice and Sam knew exactly where Mick’s mind was going. But he wasn’t going to allow it. 

Putting a gentle hand on his shoulder Sam spoke gently so the others wouldn’t over hear. “Don’t baby. Don’t go there. All right? This isn’t your fault. There’s nothing you could have done to save these kids. You know that and I know that. So don’t do this to yourself. Do you hear me?”

Mick wanted to believe Sam. He really did. But how could he? How could he believe him when the truth was right there for him to see? 

Sam could see that Mick didn’t believe him now anymore than he had believed him last night and he was getting ready to say something else to the younger man when he looked up to see John and Gina coming their way. Now wasn’t the time or place for this conversation. As much as he hated it, it was going to have to wait until tonight. 

“You going to be alright doing this?” He asked. 

“Yeah…Yeah I’ll be fine. Let’s just get this over with alright.” Mick said quietly.

With that the younger man moved passed him and headed towards the bodies. Sam watched him go, knowing deep down Mick was anything but fine right now. 

****

Mick sighed and braced him self before he crouched down in front of the first victim. God he didn’t want to do this. He didn’t want to be here examining these bodies. But he had to. If there was a chance in hell that Paine had slipped up he had to find it. 

Wincing at the shape the kid was in he gently rolled the boy over onto his side so he could get a look at his front.

Rope burns could be seen around the boy’s neck indicating he’s been strangled to death and just like Mick had known it would be the brand was there seared into the kid’s right shoulder. Forcing himself to look away from it he moved his eyes on down the boy’s body only to find it covered in bruises and blood just like the rest of him was. Jesus. Monroe and Paine hadn’t changed a bit… 

Unable to look at it any longer Mick gently lowered the kid back down to the ground on his stomach like he’d been before he’d moved him. Then he pushed himself up to his feet and went over to see if Sam had been able to learn anything from their other victim. 

“Anything?” Mick asked quietly clenching his jaw tightly at the sight of the other dead boy.

Sam shook his head his eyes never leaving the body. He was lost in his thoughts wondering how the hell their guy was managing to do this. How was he killing people and leaving nothing behind? No DNA, no seaman, no footprints…nothing. Everyone left something behind sooner or later. In all his years in working for the Jack’s red cell team Sam had come to learn one thing about killers. Sooner or later they all screwed up. They got comfortable with themselves, over confident in their ability not to mess up and then they relaxed their guard and made mistakes. But this guy…this guy wasn’t doing that. 

“Is the other body clean?” John asked looking up at him from where he crouched next to the kid. 

“Yeah.”

“I don’t understand how he’s doing this Mick. He’s like a ghost.”

“He is a ghost Gina.” 

Gina looked up at Mick’s softly spoken words and there were questions in her eyes.

“Before Paine worked for Monroe he ran black ops like I did. The government trained him Gina. They trained him to be a killer and they trained him to make people disappear without a trace.”

“Jesus.” John cursed. No wonder the bastard was so good at this. He’d made a living doing it long before he’d ever met Monroe.

“That still doesn’t explain how he’s doing this.” Sam said finally standing up from where he’d been crouched beside the body. “Everyone messes up sooner or later. Even spooks.”

Sam had a point about that. But Paine wasn’t like everyone else. He was a paranoid son of a bitch and he left nothing to chance. Nothing. 

“John, Gina why don’t you two go search further out. Maybe they’ve over looked some tire tracks or footprints. There’s got to be something to go on around here.”

Mick wanted to tell them they were wasting their time but he didn’t. If there was any chance at all of finding something…anything…then they had to take it. So he watched them go before he quietly turned back to help Coop examine the scene further. All the while wondering, like he had earlier, if these bodies hadn’t been placed here for a reason. He prayed like hell he was wrong but something told him he wasn’t…

****


End file.
